This page contains information on specific filing dates for each election year, how to become a candidate, how to create a political party, campaign finance requirements, state agency contacts involved in the election process, and term limits in Oklahoma. Information on running for election as a presidential candidate or for county and municipal offices is not included.

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The candidate filing period began April 9, 2014 and ended April 11, 2014.[1] Any challenges to a candidate's candidacy must have been filed by April 15, 2014.[2] Any group wishing to form a new political parties for the 2014 election had to file its Notice of Intent and qualifying petitions by March 1, 2014.[3] These deadlines, along with campaign finance reporting deadlines, are listed in the table below.[4]

Legend:Ballot accessCampaign financeElection date

Dates and requirements for candidates in 2014

Deadline

Event type

Event description

March 1, 2014

Ballot access

Deadline to file paperwork to form a new political party

April 9, 2014

Ballot access

Candidate filing period begins

April 11, 2014

Ballot access

Candidate filing deadline

April 15, 2014

Ballot access

Deadline to challenge the candidacy of a candidate

April 30, 2014

Campaign finance

First Contribution and Expenditure Report due

June 16, 2014

Campaign finance

Primary Pre-election Contribution and Expenditure Report due

June 24, 2014

Election date

State primary date

August 18, 2014

Campaign finance

Primary Runoff Pre-election Contribution and Expenditure Report due

August 26, 2014

Election date

State primary runoff

October 27, 2014

Campaign finance

General Pre-election Contribution and Expenditure Report due

November 4, 2014

Election date

General election

January 31, 2015

Campaign finance

Final Contribution and Expenditure Report due

Political parties

As of February 2015, the state of Oklahoma officially recognized two political parties. These are listed in the table below. In order to be recognized by the state, a political party must fulfill certain requirements, which are outlined below in "Process to establish a political party."[5]

In some states, a candidate may choose to have a label other than that of an officially recognized party appear alongside his or her name on the ballot. Such labels are called political party designations. A political party designation would be used when a candidate qualifies as an independent, but prefers to use a different label. Oklahoma does not allow candidates to identify in this way. A total of 25 states allow candidates to use political party designations in non-presidential elections.[6]

The 11 states listed below (and Washington, D.C.) do not provide a process for political organizations to gain qualified status in advance of an election. Instead, in these states, an aspirant party must first field candidates using party designations. If the candidate or candidates win the requisite votes, the organization may then be recognized as an official political party. In these states, a political party can be formed only if the candidate in the general election obtains a specific number of votes. The number of votes required and type of race vary from state to state. Details can be found on the state-specific requirements pages.[7]

Process to establish a political party

Gaining status

The first step in forming a new political party in Oklahoma is to file a "notice of intent" form with the Oklahoma State Election Board. This form can be filed at any time except between March 1 and November 15 of even-numbered years.[8]

Once the notice of intent form is filed, the new political party must circulate a qualifying petition to collect signatures of registered voters equal to at least 5 percent of the total votes cast in the last general election for governor or president. The qualifying petition can be circulated for up to one year after a Notice of Intent form is filed, but it cannot be circulated between March 1 and November 15 of any even-numbered year. To qualify as a political party in time to access the ballot in an election year, the petition must be filed by March 1 of that year. If the Oklahoma State Election Board finds that the qualifying petition contains enough valid signatures, the political party will be officially recognized by the state.[8] As an officially recognized political party, it may nominate candidates at a primary election.[9]

Maintaining status

To continue to be officially recognized by the state, a political party's candidate for governor or president in a general election must receive at least 10 percent of the vote. If the candidate fails to receive 10 percent of the vote, the party will cease to be recognized by the state. A political party that has lost its recognition is considered a "political organization." In order to be recognized again, the political organization must re-qualify by following the procedures described above. A political organization designation may last for only four years or until the organization re-qualifies as a political party.[10]

For an example of the signatures and votes needed to qualify and maintain officially recognized political party status, look to the table below.

Process to become a candidate

Filing

Each candidate must file a Declaration of Candidacy with the Oklahoma State Election Board to place his or her name on the ballot. The declaration must be filed during the candidate filing period, which begins on the second Wednesday in April and ends on the following Friday. The Declaration of Candidacy must be signed and notarized and include the following:[12][13][14][15]

the name of the candidate

the candidate's address

the office the candidate seeks

the candidate's date of birth

the candidate's political party affiliation

the precinct and county where the candidate is a registered voter

a sworn oath affirming that the candidate is qualified to become a candidate of the office sought and to hold that office if elected

A partisan candidate must be a registered voter of the political party with which he or she wishes to run for at least six months immediately preceding the first day of the candidate filing period. An independent candidate must be registered as an independent voter for at least six months before filing as a candidate. A candidate of a new political party that has not been officially recognized for six months must be registered with that party within 15 days following its recognition.[16]

A candidate may file for only one office per election. There is no process for candidates to run as write-ins as write-in voting is not permitted in Oklahoma.[17][18]

Fees

With the Declaration of Candidacy, each candidate must pay a filing fee to the Oklahoma State Election Board or else file a petition signed by 4 percent of registered voters who will be eligible to vote for the candidate in the election (this figure is determined by using the latest January 15 voter registration report).[19]

Filing fees are determined by the office sought by the candidate and are described in the table below.[19]

Challenges

Any candidate may challenge another candidate’s candidacy by filing a written petition of contest with the Oklahoma State Election Board. If there is only one candidate running for office, any registered voter who is eligible to vote for that candidate may file a contesting petition. This must be done by 5 p.m. on the second business day after the close of the candidate filing period. The contesting petition must be accompanied by a deposit of $250, which will be returned to the challenger if he or she successfully proves that the candidate does not fulfill all requirements to be a candidate for that office.[22][23][24][25]

Petition requirements

In some cases, political parties and/or candidates may need to obtain signatures via the petition process to gain ballot access. This section outlines the laws and regulations pertaining to petitions and circulators in Oklahoma.

In Oklahoma, petitions are used to qualify a new political party or to waive a filing fee. To qualify a new political party, signatures equal to 5 percent of the total votes cast in the last general election for governor or president need to be collected.[26] To waive a candidate's filing fee, a petition must be signed by 4 percent of registered voters who will be eligible to vote in the first election in which that candidate's name will appear on the ballot.[27]

Format requirements

The form of the petition is prescribed by the Oklahoma State Election Board. While being circulated, petitions must be separated into pages based on counties. Each page can contain signatures of registered voters from only one county.[26]

The Oklahoma Code does not stipulate any requirements for circulators of petitions. Specifically, there are no residency requirements for circulators.

Campaign finance

This section covers all campaign finance reporting requirements for candidates running for state office in Oklahoma. Candidates running for federal office must file with the Federal Election Commission.

Reporting requirements

Filing online

Every candidate in Oklahoma files campaign finance reports with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission. A candidate who receives contributions in excess of $10,000 is required to file reports online, but the online system is open to every candidate.[28]

Statement of Organization

Before the candidate can start filing campaign finance reports, he or she must first file a Statement of Organization (Form SO-1) to form a candidate committee, which will be in charge of all contributions and expenditures for the campaign. The Statement of Organization must provide the name of the committee, which must include the name of the candidate and the year of the election in which the candidate will be running, as well as designate a committee chair and a treasurer. The candidate may hold both of those positions but may only designate one candidate committee per election cycle. The Statement of Organization must be filed within 10 days of the candidate filing a Declaration of Candidacy, or within 10 days of receiving or spending $500, whichever comes first.[29][30]

The candidate committee must then establish a campaign account for all campaign finance activity. The campaign account can be in more than one location, as long as each location is a financial institution that ordinarily conducts business with the state and has an office in the state that ordinarily conducts business with the general public, and as long as each depository contains the whole name of the candidate committee without acronyms as well as the candidate's name and the year of the election in which the candidate is running. All expenditures in excess of $50, not including those made by the candidate from personal funds, must be taken from the campaign account and issued on a check signed by the candidate, treasurer or chair of the candidate committee. All contributions received on behalf of the candidate committee must be handed over to the treasurer within five days after receipt of the contribution. Contributions must then be deposited into the campaign account by the treasurer no later that 10 days after the treasurer accepted the contribution.[28][30][31]

Statement of Financial Interests

The candidate is also required to file a Statement of Financial Interests (Form F-1R) to itemize his or her sources of income. The amount of income is not required. This form may be filed anytime between January 1 and the tenth day after a candidate files a Declaration of Candidacy. A candidate who is successfully elected to public office must file this form by May 15 of each year he or she holds that office.[28][32]

Contribution and Expenditure Reports

Each candidate committee must file Contribution and Expenditure Reports (C-1R Reports) showing all financial reporting activity for each established reporting period. However, if a candidate committee expects to receive or spend less than $500 in a calendar year, it may file an Affidavit of Minimal Activity with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission by April 30 of the election year. This allows the candidate committee to file only annual reports.[28][33]

Contribution and Expenditure Reports are filed quarterly. The non-election year reporting schedule is detailed in the table below.[33]

Report due date

Time period covered

April 30

January 1 through March 31

July 31

April 1 through June 30

September 30

July 1 through August 31

January 31

September 1 through December 31

The election year reporting schedule is detailed in the table below.

Report due date

Time period covered

April 30

January 1 through March 31

8 days before the primary election

April 1 through 15 days before the primary election

8 days before the primary run-off election (if applicable)

14 days before the primary election through 15 days before the primary run-off election

8 days before the general election

14 days before the primary or primary run-off election through 15 days before the general election

January 31

14 days before the general election through December 31

During an election year, Last Minute Contributions Reports (C-4R Reports) might also be required. These are necessary to report contributions of $500 or more from one source after the closing of a pre-election report but before the date of the next election and are due within 24 hours of receipt of the contribution.[28][34]

If no expenditures were made and no contributions were received during a reporting period, a candidate committee can file a Statement of Inactivity (Form C-3R) instead of the regularly scheduled report.[28]

If mailing or hand-delivering reports, they are considered timely only when received by 5 p.m. of the due date. If filing electronically or by fax, they are considered timely if received by midnight of the due date. If a report is not delivered in a timely fashion, late fees will be applied, from $100 to $1,000 per day.[28]

Reporting must continue until the campaign is concluded by filing a Final Report. This report may be filed at any time after a candidate's name appears on the ballot as long as the candidate committee can show a zero balance. If a candidate committee has surplus funds at the end of the campaign, there a number of ways the committee can disperse those funds. The committee can:[28]

retain the funds for use in a future election within six years of the general election in which the candidate ran

use the funds to perform official duties as a public officeholder

use the funds for political or community activities

transfer the funds to a political party

Contributor Statement

A contributor who gives more than $50 to a campaign must sign a Contributor Statement. This is due within 10 days of the candidate committee receiving the contribution and must provide the following information:[28][35]

the date the contribution was given

the amount of the contribution (if in-kind, a description and estimated value of the contribution must be provided)

the name of the contributor

the address of the contributor

the occupation, employer or principal business activity of the contributor

a declaration stating that the contribution is for a campaign in the state of Oklahoma and that it was freely and voluntarily given from the contributor's personal property

Contribution limits

A family, defined as an individual, the individual's spouse and any and all children under the age of 18 residing in the same household, may give a maximum of $5,000 to a candidate committee for an entire campaign and $5,000 annually to a person, committee or party supporting or opposing candidates.

Corporations and labor organizations are prohibited from contributing to any committee supporting or opposing candidates.

Political parties may contribute up to $5,000 to a candidate.

Individuals may not make cash contributions of more than $50.

Individuals may not anonymously contribute money in excess of $50. If a candidate receives such a contribution, it must remit the funds to the Oklahoma Ethics Commission within two business days of receiving it.